Vienna
like mecca
a pilgrimage
to the home of music
even in the air
and we were chaperoning
the young daughter
of our Yugoslavian friends
to her older sister
in Kropa
Stop in Vienna
got there late
went out to dinner
Ratskeller still barely open
enormous empty basement room
so late
only one other table with people
we three made the only second other
gypsy orchestra playing
to the very last
waiter appeared
solicitous
to American tourists who
presumably must have tourist money
I ordered the Bauernplatte
My God! So much meat! Even for me!
We all ate happy
stuffed
the other table emptied
now we were the last
in the empty darkening room
gypsy violinist
came over hopefully
asked requests
I said
“meine Lippen sie küssen so heiß”
he launched into
the song we love
our recording at home
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf
echt
little Piki blushed
told the violinist
“It’s not for me”
and pointed to my wife Shirley
“It’s for her”
I hope I tipped enough
we were the very last to leave
into an empty
dark city
vacant streets
we walked back to the hotel
the Ambassador’s apartment
available
because he was out of town
and they were glad to double charge
a plush room for us
and around an open wall
a little addition
with a little bed for Piki
and in daylight we walked the city
stepping where Mozart stepped
took the trolley
around the Ringstraße
climbed the cathedral
looking down the slanting roof
you don’t get that in pictures
We strolled the Ring
the elegant shops so much like
the rows of elegant shops
in every city that finds room
for opulent display
we were staying near
the indoor arena where
the Lipizzaner horses
practiced parading
the rider and horse
together so long
they were one purpose
manifest and equifest
in mutual delight
and on the street itself
the large outdoor structures
when nature calls
a small coin to enter
pays for toilet paper
handed at entrance
and rows of democratizing urinals
the people friendly
but I didn’t stay around
to find out how friendly
we strolled the park
obeisance to the statues
Johann Strauss
we almost danced
at night strolling
through the lighted dark
stopped at a restaurant
terrace overlooking the park
and outdoor ballet
sympathetic waiter apologized
you can sit and watch
but you have to order something
maybe just coffee
I always afraid of money
we left
next day we booked
an overnight trip to Budapest
we were like real tourists
hotel overlooking the square
the Statue Horsemen
the art museum
closed on strike
we bought a tour
that took us to dinner
at a typical expected authentic restaurant
catering to tourists like our group
under the table kick-back to the tour guide
first course fish soup
they warned us was too spicy hot to eat
no one could
but hungry me
finished mine
Shirley poured her bowl
into mine I finished it too
the waiters all astounded
everybody applauded
I modestly bowed
and the violins came over
we noticed
wherever we went
large shadowy men
in long overcoats
followed our every move
watching our hotel window
to remind us of the curtain
and which side we were on
next day tour
the guide gone mad on churches
tried to take us to every one
until we all cried
“No more churches!”
So he took us to
The Fishermen’s Overlook
above the river
looking toward the famous Lion Bridge
we crossed
I think I remember
we passed Piki on
to Yugoslavia
and on our own
tried the museum again
a cleaning woman
by the door
before she could close it
explained
closed on strike
another missed opportunity
wherever you go
like the Rijksmuseum
in Amsterdam
closed for the same reason
like a European conspiracy
just for us
and back to Vienna
by boat down the Danube
not blue at all
pollution doesn’t listen to music
and we rode above the waves
on a hydrofoil
I’d never been on
and hardly ever seen
a thrill ride
new experiences
anywhere you go
and back to the hotel
they’d kept our luggage
handy by the desk
I rushed to the room
to get to the bathroom
noticed the luggage already there
like teleportation
then heard water splashing
in the bathroom
stopped myself
just in time
in sudden realization
the Ambassador was back in town
I was in his room with his luggage
he was in the bathroom
I narrowly avoided an International Incident
we’d been moved
to a smaller room
but big enough
And since we were at last
in real Europe we thought
we should go to a Greek restaurant
because Shirley had been raised Greek
and taught me the food
we wanted Souvlaki and briami
and dolmathes and moussaka
and feta cheese and looked
for a Greek restaurant but
the closest we could come
was a Turkish restaurant on the edge
of the inner city
and the food was pretty much the same
we couldn’t eat it all
asked for a doggie bag
to carry the rest to our room
and they seemed never to have heard
of such an idea
so I guess we brought new ideas
to Europe and
we thought of going to
the Vienna Woods
at the edge of town
where we could walk around
and sit in a beer garden
and drink a mug full
and admire the heads of animals
the Austrians loved to shoot
and mount in rows on the walls
but instead
we took a side trip bus
to Schönbrunn
and stepped out
into empire
the palace
the gardens
big enough for troops in review
the high facing hill
the gloriette
where we spent time
looking down and over
because the palace itself
was either closed
or cost entry money
so we stayed on the opposite hill
and noticed the odd
row of horned skulls
like cattle displayed
and we asked ourselves
“Are we in Texas?”
and the whole setting
we see every year
on television
New Year’s in Vienna
music and dance and singing
we knew would show us
where we’d been
as we looked forward
to the changing year
Vienna
a real city
a highlight of our lives
even without much money
to experience it all
I sometimes think
I should go back
but with Shirley gone
I don’t know
if I have the heart
to go alone
to follow Mozart’s footsteps
following hers